ALAMEDA, CA (TCD) — A 43-year-old man who murdered his fiancee in 2023, hid her dismembered body in a black trash bag and dumped it on the beach, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.
Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announced May 13 that a jury found Joseph Roberts guilty of second-degree murder of Rachel Elizabeth Imani Buckner. . He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 14.
According to an initial news release from the Alameda Police Department on July 20, 2023, officers and the Alameda County Sheriff's Office Coroner responded to the shoreline near the Bay Farm Island Bridge in reference to human remains found inside a bag. At the time, authorities were unable to release the victim's name but ruled her death a homicide.
In late August 2023, investigators used DNA evidence to identify the victim as Buckner. Prosecutors said officials also found Roberts' DNA on duct tape used to secure trash bags.
Roberts and Buckner lived together in Pleasanton, California, and reportedly met several years ago at Golden Gate University Law School. KNTV-TV reported that Buckner had recently graduated from law school before his death.
According to the District Attorney's Office, local police responded to the couple's apartment several times for welfare checks and reports of domestic violence. Despite the fact that they lived together, Roberts never reported Buckner missing after his disappearance.
“What happened to Rachel Elizabeth Imani Buckner is unimaginable,” Price said. “The condition of her body when it was found shocks our humanity. This tragedy brings tears to her family and our community every time her murder is mentioned. “I will be forever shocked,” he said.
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